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Why Are There Four Hegelian Judgments, David G. Carlson

Articles

Hegel is the philosopher of threes. His entire system is triune: logic-nature-spirit. Within the logic is a triune structure: being, essence, notion. Within notion there is a triad: subject-object-idea. Within subjectivity, there is a triad: notion, judgment, syllogism. Yet when we examine Hegel's critique of judgment, there are four (not three): inherence-reflection-necessity-notion.

This paper tries to explain why this is so. There is a disturbing element present at all times in Hegel's logic - what Slavoj Zizek named a silent fourth, which erupts and manifests itself in judgment. This paper refines and justifies Zizek's insight, arguing from the text of …

The Antepenultimacy Of The Beginning In Hegel’S Science Of Logic, David G. Carlson

Articles

The Science of Logic is the keystone for Hegel's philosophy. Perhaps the single most perplexing problem in this work is the status of the beginning. Hegel insisted that philosophy must be self-grounding. It cannot start from "givens." Yet, if Hegel's beginning is merely stipulated or "given," then his project is defeated. The usual view of Hegel's intent is that the beginning (Pure Being) is the last step, so that what begins as a presupposition ends up being "proven." This article suggests something different. It proposes that the beginning (Pure Being) is actually the "antepenultimate" (or third-from-last) step of the Science …